Paul Davis

Rotherham United today come face to face with the free-scoring striker boss Steve Evans once tried to sign.

Britt Assombalonga, who has scored goals 12 goals for Nottingham Forest, would have been lining up for the Millers if Evans had got his way.

“We tried to sign him and then Barry Fry kidnapped him! And that’s true, even if you think that is a wild statement,” Evans said.

“We were in talks about buying him and Barry arrived at the training ground of Watford and took Assombalonga in a car to Peterborough and signed him.

“He was terrific at Watford in the reserves and went to Southend on loan and was fantastic at scoring goals.

“We tracked him and obviously Peterborough took him and it was no surpris after what he achieved there to see a club like Forest take him. I suppose the only surprise was it wasn’t a Premiership club who signed him given the goals he was scoring.

Rotherham, 21st in the Championship, face 10th-placed Forest at New York Stadium this afternoon, with the Millers’ four new loan players, Tom Lawrence, Reece James, Scott Wootton and Emmanuel Ledesma having made abig impact.

Evans said: “I read a great quote in the week from Brian Clough and the quote was: ‘What has tactics got to do with football?’

“Players win and lose football matches and it’s as simple as that.”

Evans has hinted that some players could be leaving the club in January.

“None of the main core group,” he said.

“The ones that aren’t getting around the matchday squad as we head towards the 2015 bells perhaps will have to move on.”